August brings the dog days of summer, and the final batch of July Spotlight content in Diamond Dynasty. MLB The Show 26 is closing out July with CJ Abrams and David Ortiz taking home the July Spotlight Lightning Honors.
July Spotlight Drop 4 Program Breakdown
The Spotlight programs to wrap up the month have been one of the more refreshing changes to content this year. Unlocking Abrams will require finishing the latest Spotlight content and collecting the previous Spotlight Program rewards.
This card probably won't excite many people. Sometimes in the "meta" shuffle, the uniqueness of content like this seems to get lost. No, this isn't the best shortstop in the game, but imagine if Corey Seager was super-fast and not as strong defensively? That's basically what this Abrams card is, and you can always invest in the Fielding Mods to make him a bit more well-rounded.
Abrams is a fun player, with massive power for a shortstop. He's got a stone glove and no secondaries, but he also has 90 Speed and 91 Stealing. No one is perfect, but CJ Abrams is CJ Abrams. What makes players so interesting is their unique toolsets and how they perform, obviously, but that also shapes the impact of their cards in Diamond Dynasty. Getting a card like this doesn't shake up the meta, but it represents Abrams as he is performing currently.
Sometimes I think it's worth pointing out the cool parts of the game, especially when things get a bit on the downslope after the All-Star break.
The featured program cards are:
- Gabriel Moreno, C ARI (Spotlight)
- Ty France, 1B SD (Spotlight)
- Brent Headrick, RP NYY (Spotlight)
- Troy Melton, SP DET (Spotlight)
- Chandler Simpson, LF TB (Spotlight)
- Andruw Monasterio, SS BOS (Spotlight)
- Shawn Ross, C NYM (Topps Now)
- Royce Lewis, 3B MIN (Topps Now)
- Kody Clemens, 1B MIN (Topps Now)
- Jase Bowen, OF SD (Topps Now)
July Spotlight Drop 4 Pack Breakdown
The featured pack cards this week are:
- Jackson Merrill, CF SD (99 OVR Spotlight)
- Heriberto Hernandez, LF MIA (99 OVR Spotlight)
- Ezequiel Duran, SS TEX (99 OVR Spotlight)
- Steven Kwan, LF CLE (98 OVR Spotlight)
- Nick Gonzales, 3B PIT (98 OVR Spotlight)
- Peter Lambert, SP HOU (98 OVR Spotlight)
- Jordan Hicks, RP CWS (97 OVR Spotlight)
- Mason Montgomery, RP PIT (97 OVR Spotlight)
- Joey Ortiz, SS MIL (97 OVR Spotlight)
- Jared Jones, SP PIT (97 OVR Spotlight)
Retro Lightning Collection: 99 OVR David Ortiz (Minnesota Twins)
A fairly rare 99 OVR David Ortiz sighting earns the July Retro Lightning Collection reward status.
Papi made the Hall of Fame as a Designated Hitter, so the poor fielding attributes suggest using him in that role exclusively. You know what you're getting with Papi: above-average-to-elite offensive attributes, a sweet swing, and not much else.
Right now it's about 300,000 Stubs to finish the collection for Ortiz. For a pure DH, that's a tough value to meet for just about anyone. The Spotlight collections have come down in overall cost, but they've also come down in "wow factor." First base/DH types are easy to come by, but this Twins version of Ortiz will absolutely mash for you.
Second-Half Surge Event Program Breakdown
A new Event also launched today, featuring the following roster restrictions:
New Threads, Live Series, Spotlight, Topps Now, 2nd Half Heroes, Jolt Series, 75+ Speed cards only.
The reward path is filled with July Spotlight packs, which should further drive down the price of collecting for Ortiz. It's also a nice way to generate some Stubs fast if you aren't really worried about the collection. I love playing Events, especially right after the Weekend Classic. It freshens up the experience using cards I don't typically use, and getting some pretty decent rewards is always a good time.
Stubs Sale
If you're feeling the itch to spend real fake money to buy the virtual fake currency, you get to enjoy up to 50% off Stubs for the next week. With Ohtani and Judge already astronomically expensive, this probably won't help the cause.
Might Have Missed
You can land a free 99 OVR Pipeline George Lombard Jr. in the Show Shop. SDS is giving away the card to celebrate the top prospect's imminent MLB debut.
I'm in desperate need of a new shortstop, so I'll happily take a free card that looks like this. I've been hitting over .400 with Nasim Nunez, but despite his solid fielding attributes, I've watched him boot several routine balls at shortstop. Lombard brings Diamond fielding to shortstop, with pretty balanced offensive attributes and speed/stealing ability.
Completely free in the Show Shop. Grab him while you can.
Ernie Clement Takeover Program
Collect your prize if you had this on your content bingo card.
Clement set the MLB postseason record for most hits in a single postseason with 30 in 2025. It's pretty cool that SDS is celebrating a current MLB player for a pretty impressive accomplishment. This is the kind of thing that turns into a dope card years from now when Clement is out of the league, and people are learning about him for the first time when he gets a sweet legend card.
This is a very strong card that will also get some at-bats on my squad as I look for my new shortstop. Clement's swing seems absolutely vicious, and he's got balanced Speed/Fielding to go with the elite offense. Finishing the Live Series for Troy Tulowitzki isn't happening without a miraculous Ohtani pull, so I'm happy to experiment in the bargain bin for a new shortstop.
Will you be completing the July Retro Lightning Collection? How close are you to finishing the Live Series collection? Drop a comment below!
